Great Caesar's Ghost

Seriously,
There is quite an extensive vetting process prior to any police officer being hired. Unfortunately, the major problem with police departments is they have to draw their members from the human race.
To me, the significance of this article is not that a cop went bad but how OSP responded to it. Within 24 hours of being made aware there was a problem, the officer had not only resigned but had been arrested and booked.
After living through the ongoing, years long, soap opera that is playing out at PPB RE: Frashour, Nice, Humphreys, etc. it's refreshing to find a police force that actually takes its obligations to protect the citizens seriously. Even from their own members. Kudos to the State Police for having that integrity.

Rest In Peace, Chief. A true hero has fallen and we are the lesser for it. What a beautiful showing from the law enforcement community, first responders, and most importantly, the citizens of this state. Displays such as this show the true appreciation the community has for the heros that put their lives on the line for us every day. My prayers are with the family, as they must face the rest of their lives without this wonderful and caring man.
Godspeed Chief Painter.

Hey Shout. This is not a complicated concept. If you don't want to be stopped by the police...obey the laws. Then I guarantee you they won't bother you. But if you do break the law, like driving without your required lighting at night, then if the police try to stop you, I suggest YOU STOP!

And for the record, the LAW that gave the officer the AUTHORITY to stop him in the first place is ORS 810.410. You might want to read it.

Too Bad, So Sad for her. I find it difficult to develop any sympathy for anyone in this day and age who gets drunk then gets behind the wheel of a car. I don't know if she felt "obligated" or "social pressure" to drink but I know damn well she was not "pressured" to get behind the wheel of her car.

This is such lawyer B***S***. It's never the perpetrators fault. Someone else is always responsible for their bad decision. I'm just glad she was the only one seriously injured. Usually the drunk walks away and the innocent victim is left to suffer. In this case, sounds like justice was served.

Now if anyone is really interested in forcing the Police Bureau to change, stop the vitriol and name calling and contact the city council. Make them pass a city ordinance that states that anytime the city settles a law suit, or a jury awards damages, due to negligence on the part of a PPB member, then that member will be disciplined. It's that simple: The City pays money on your behalf, you are responsible and you will be disciplined. No appeals, no arbitration. And make it applicable to ALL city employees. Not just PPB.

If your negligence as a city employee costs the city money, then you are responsible and you will be disciplined. And make the discipline proportional to the amount of the damage award. $100,000 award: One week without pay. $500,000 award: One month without pay. Over $800,000 in damages. Fired!

Why is anyone in Portland shocked, or upset, by this promotion? Portland has exactly the Police force it deserves. Consider the following: From reading these blogs, blaming the retention of bad cops is laid directly at the feet of the police union. Now ask yourself, When is the last time a public employee union endorsed a Republican? I honestly can't remember when that last happened. According to the last election results, 70% of Multnomah County,and Portland, voted the Democratic ticket. So all of you who voted for Democrats, raise your hand. You are the ones who are ultimately responsible for the police bureau and its current culture of utter disdain for the public.

Now before some of you get highly offended, I'm not saying Republicans would do any better. In fact, this is not a critique of the Democratic Party but a condemnation of one party rule and validation of the adage "Absolute power corrupts absolutely." And in Portland, the party in power without restraint is the progressive Democrat party.

So be honest: How many of the bloggers on this site, who are most critical of PPB voted for Tom Potter? For Sam Adams?. The fact is, Katz, Potter, Adams, et al. know they will get elected and re-elected as there is no opposition party in Portland. So if they know their re-election is assured, why should they care what their minions do?

The bottom line is this: The Police Bureau does not answer to the people because it doesn't have to. And the reason it doesn't is because its political masters don't have to answer to the citizens. Until the citizens of Portland stand up and hold the City Council accountable for the actions of the Bureau, PPB will never care what you think.

And this sums up, in one story, what is wrong with Portland. The school board gave her three benchmarks to achieve, she failed at all three, and they trip over themselves gushing about how great she is! As near as I can tell from the story, her main claim to fame is she hasn't left! But why should she? Anywhere else might actually expect results and evaluate her on her COMPETENCE!

Is it any wonder the Portland School System is failing? Why should the students perform when they know they will be rewarded regardless of effort? After all, if the Superintendent is held completely unaccountable for meeting established standards, why should they?

I don't know how anyone can read this story and not be completely disgusted with the entire Portland School System and the idiots that allegedly lead it. The next time I'm asked why my kids are in private school, I will refer the questioner to this article. This sums it up more eloquently than I ever could!

It does appear that the bomb tech made a horrendous mistake. One which he and another officer paid with their lives. And a mistake that his family will continue to pay with for the rest of their lives. But none of that changes the basic fact that the two defendants built a LIVE BOMB!

Bombs are designed and built with the intention of MAIMING and KILLING! They have no other purpose! They knew that when they built it and placed it at the bank, it was with the intention of killing SOMEONE! And that is why bombs are so insidious. Placed in public, they kill RANDOMLY. Any of us could have been the victim. And that is why they deserve the death penalty. They intended for people to die that day. And it didn't mater to them who it was.

This is exactly the thing that has finally caused me, God forbid, to vote for a Republican. I am definitely progressive on most social issues yet I realize we can't continue spending money that we don't have. I really don't know what type of Governor Dudley would make, and I might regret my vote, but I do know that until someone STANDS UP to the public employee unions, nothing is going to change in this state. Kitzhaber, unfortunately, did not take them on the last time he was in office, and as AFSCME, SEIU, and OTA are his largest contributors this time around, I really don't see him doing anything to change the single largest drain on our tax dollars. Until we have a Governor willing to fight against the public employee unions, all we are really doing is re-arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

So could someone please explain to me how the Oregon State Police managed to arrest this resisting female without having to shoot/taze/beanbag/ or slam her into the concrete. Oh, wait a minute. She isn't twelve years old! Seriously though, they managed to arrest three suspects, one of whom was allegedly drunk and one who allegedly resisted arrest, without resorting to a beat down. Is it possible they weren't dangerous. Or, and this is just a theory, is it possible that OSP is just better trained, more disciplined, and more competent than their Portland brethren?